Ruhrbühne Witten
| Ruhrbühne Witten | |
|---|---|
| legal form | society |
| founding | January 10, 1926 |
| founder | Heinrich Backhaus August Bach |
| Seat | Witten ( ⊙ ) |
| motto | Your amateur theater at Crengeldanz |
| method | Amateur theater |
| Members | 116 |
| Website | www.ruhrbuehne-witten.de |
The Ruhrbühne Witten eV is a non-profit amateur theater association with its own venue in Witten on the city limits of Bochum. The repertoire includes comedies, crime novels, music revues, readings and children's plays. The association is a member of the BDAT .
history
Foundation and time of National Socialism
On January 10, 1926, members of two theater associations founded the “Waldesrose” theater association in the Bochum restaurant “Lueg” in Papenholz. Of the seven founders, only two names are known today: Heinrich Beckhaus and August Bach. Over the years the “Waldesrose” and its performances have developed into a playfully good and well-known theater. During the time of National Socialism, when the smaller associations were not granted a right to exist, the association had to cease its theater work in 1935. In 1948, after his return from French captivity, Alfred Haselhorst looked for old members and so gaming was resumed on February 29, 1948.
post war period
On March 3 and 4, 1951, the first post-war performances took place in the “Zeller” hall and in the “Hellmann” hall in Papenholz. The drama “Dungeon and Freedom” by Webels saw a total of 409 spectators - with an entry fee of 1 DM. The theater club had to take a longer forced break due to the leasing of the club's “Zeller” premises. In the new home, the “Hiby” inn in Langendreer, a stage was set up in-house. The first play on this stage on October 25, 1965 was the crime thriller Gaslicht by Patrick Hamilton .
Renaming to "Ruhrbühne Witten"
In an extraordinary meeting on August 12, 1967, the association decided to change its name because it hoped that the name change would attract more public attention in the future and thus stimulate its activities.
After several changes, the Ruhrbühne found a permanent home in 1969 in the “Saalbau Hellmann” in Papenholz. When the municipal hall in Witten was opened in 1975, the hall was a permanent part of the amateur theater association. The most popular performance of the Ruhrbühne so far took place there in December 1991: The Christmas play Peterchens Mondfahrt was visited by 4,400 spectators over five days of performance. In order to be able to do justice to the crowd, additional performances were added spontaneously.
Build your own theater
When a new clubhouse had to be found in 1999, the club and the photo club OBJEKTIV ART'96 rented the premises of the former Rudolf Steiner School at Bochumer Str. 10a. The interior of the old wooden pavilion was renovated with great dedication in-house and converted into a unique cultural venue: The theater hall with the showcase stage was built in the former gym and today offers space for 99 spectators in its rising auditorium; the former classrooms were converted into club rooms, workshops and storage rooms and the mask was set up in the former teachers' room.
In 2010 the Ruhrbühne bought the property and the building from the city of Witten. Since then the members of the association have tried to preserve the building for the future and to renovate it bit by bit. Because parts of the wooden building were built in the 1960s for the high number of students and, according to the planning, should only last about 20 years. At the same time, two more venues were created in 2013: The “studio stage” was technically expanded and now offers space for around 40 people. The club members erected a covered outdoor stage in the outdoor area, which was ceremoniously opened at the summer festival in July 2013.
Current
In 2019 the association had 117 members between the ages of 3 and 97 years. Two plays for adults and a Christmas fairy tale are staged each year. Costumes, props, stage sets and matching café and foyer decorations are made or assembled entirely in-house.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d The chronicle of the stage from 1926 to today - a brief overview of our history. Ruhrbühne Witten, accessed on February 11, 2016 .